Maturity
by sweetbreezes
Summary: Tails deals with nightmares and independence, and Sonic tries to knock sense into the supposed genius he calls a brother. Takes place few weeks after Lost World, Sonic and Tails story, NOT SHIPPY.


He thought he was over this. He had to be over this. Why wasn't he over this? He wanted to be over this! He was over this, he _was_!

Yet here he was again, surrounded by nothing save for the wide expanse of darkness.

He's seen this place before, and regardless of the months between now and their last encounter, Tails could never forget the look of this place. Or lack thereof, really.

It may not look that scary unless the one dealing with the place suffers from fear of the darkness, which luckily Tails didn't. It was simply black, the lack of light. No angry spitting monsters, no giant killer robots, no lightning like he's used to seeing in such a background. It was nothing but emptiness. A void full of nothing and everything, fear and uncertainty being most prominent.

Tails knew this was a dream. Again, he's seen this place before; he's felt this feeling of anxiety and emptiness within him. He could remember waking up every time he had come face to face with this nothing. He knew he was currently laying in bed inside the comfort of his workshop; sleeping fitfully, he expected, but safe and alive nonetheless.

 _Alive_ , he thought to himself. _You're alive and breathing, stop being so afraid!_

But it still scared him.

It really did.

There was nothing that should reasonably spook him, and the reason that it was currently terrifying him so was perhaps not what younger him would've been fretting about. Little Tails would be crying because he'd be expecting lightning, but Big Tails wasn't so preoccupied with those at the moment. He knew this silence, this cold and merciless vacancy of everything that wasn't present in his thunderstorm nightmares. Besides the fact that those were rare nowadays, there was never any silence within that category of dark dreams. The sky would turn black only to be soon assaulted with strikes of lightning, leaving no room for quiet. This wasn't a stormy sky—this wasn't a sky at all.

It was, again, nothing.

If anything was running through his mind, it was that mix of letter (that and sheer panic). Tails had lost grasp on the meaning of that word, if he could call it that. It wasn't even a word at this point, but a silent and ever present hum that made his ears buzz. He wanted it to end, to dissolve into any other thought or phrase or picture or sight. Anything but nothing and _black_!

But then once it digressed and everything went still, he started to regret his wishes.

That chanting had been the only thing telling Tails he was still alive, he realized. He realized it every single time he found himself floating in this void, yet returning just wiped his memory blank. _Had there been a last time?_ Had he just made it up in an attempt to escape this all? A distraction that proved fruitless enough to be forgotten?

Tails wanted to scream. Freak out, squirm, say something, do something, anything! He'd rip out his tails if it made him come back, if it made him stop from going insane in this.. this.. this limbo!

Was his heart still beating? Was it even there? Was breathing possible? He couldn't feel it, he couldn't feel anything but cold, oh so cold. Cold, yet he couldn't move and was convinced that he either lacked a body or he couldn't feel it. Amongst his blurry thoughts, he hoped that his heart would start running and running like Sonic could, to give him some way of knowing that he hadn't kicked the bucket.

 _Sonic.._ Sonic! He had to be on his way, he had to. He always did. The last bits of memory the fox could cling to showed him that the hedgehog had retaliated against the.. the.. the thing. He had to come. He _had_ to! He had to get him out of this place..

But those memories also showed a speck of azure being flung off towards the floor, only to stop moving after a twitch or two.

Was Sonic dead? No no, he couldn't be! He's survived falls from higher altitudes than that, there's no way he could've bit the dust so easily. He hadn't gotten sucked into the purple swirl, at least before Tails himself had.

Right? That was what had happened.. It was, right? The kit wasn't sure anymore.

What he was sure of was that he didn't want to die. He didn't want to stop, he wanted to keep going. What was that thing that had attacked them at the party, the thing that had gotten him stuck here? The thing that had thrown Sonic off with such ease?

Sonic wasn't dead. He wasn't. That was the last thing Tails had full grasp on. He couldn't be dead, Sonic couldn't be dead. Sonic had to come help them, to help _him_. Sonic was fine.. He was fine!

He wanted to feel scared now, he wanted to feel anything. But emotions had become numb who knows how long ago. He couldn't feel anything, but Tails knew that he would be more upset over this all had he been able to.

His mind was barely able to conjure up thoughts, Tails was aware of only this now. He could feel whatever shred of consciousness drift away. So easily and so slowly, almost as if it was mocking him.

But he wasn't angry. He wasn't scared. He wasn't happy, sad, confused, anything.

He was alone. Dead and alone. He was sure of it. Sure of it.

Sure of..

Sure..

Su..

S..

...

"Gah!"

A sudden gasp of air pushed its way out of Tails' lungs. His eyes flew open, meeting the same black they had been staring at for what felt like a millennium. He was about to wish for the ability to wail out in distress at the thought of dealing with it all again, until a sliver of light slipped in through the curtains, which had been originally closed but brought a tad apart by the night breeze.

 _Wait.. Eyes, air, thoughts, light? Not black? Something?_

Tails sat up in a flash, breathing in and out in quick succession as his gaze fell upon green sheets. Sheets that were proven to be real by shaking hands one second later. The fox clutched the material, rubbing his fingertips along the soft surface. It was soft and comfortable, but most importantly warm.

Managing to shake his head once out of his stupor, the fox reached up to grasp his forehead, feeling a cold sweatdrop run down his brow as his hand wandered over to his right ear. Pulling on it tightly and emitting a yip from himself, he confirmed that he, indeed, was awake and alive.

It had been a dream. Of course it had been, it always was.

Yet every time it was the same thing. There's a giant empty hole without a possible limit, he loses consciousness and all his memories along with any ability to feel, and he was back to the waking world.

Tails, no able to reflect and have thoughts again, thought back to the initial incident that had sparked such a reaction from him. The same song and dance it had been for half a week, a half week full of no sleep and full immersion in his inventions, the latter a coping method with lots of things that may happen to scare or bother the fox.

But that had been months ago.. Sonic's birthday was in June, and now it was.. Well, Tails was still recovering and had no intent of looking at a calendar, but it certainly wasn't June now.

So why was he having nightmares about that again? Hadn't he had enough? Was it going to continue for another three days?

Finally managing to make a noise besides his forced yelp, Tails groaned and laid down on his bed again. He didn't dare close his eyes again, in fear that he would get forced back into that infernal limbo. Instead, sky blue eyes decided to focus on the ceiling above before straying away and towards the window, where the moonlight was coming through.

The sight of the light did little to aid his nerves, as opposed to the first time seeing it. He couldn't shake the feeling of dread and emptiness he had felt while floating in the middle of whatever that was. Tails could feel his ears pinning against his head and his teeth digging into his lower lip. It was just like months ago again, and no amount of breathing deeply or tossing and turning helped. The fox was about to scream in frustration from the terrible weight on his chest when he remembered something.

Sonic was in the room down the hall.

He didn't want the hedgehog to come over and see him like this. He had last time Tails dealt with these nightmares, and other types as well, but the vulpine didn't want him to do it now. In the past year he had done so much to stop being so clingy and dependent on the hedgehog, which had made him proud beyond belief. He had gained individuality, courage and even a good amount of self confidence. He had actually progressed and changed for the better. He had been amazed at his progress, and had welcomed it, but he felt like he had fallen behind a couple thousand steps in his independence ladder after that dream, just like last time.

The nightmare filled him with panic and horror, more than just sadness or simple fear like the thunderstorm variety did. The limbo kind were different, because he didn't need to let it out like he did with others, but rather needed reassurance and comfort.

He didn't want them though.

He'd always love Sonic, of course. They had known each other for so long, had been through so much, knew so much about the other. Sonic was his older brother, he couldn't not love him. He didn't want to not love him, in truth.

Problem was, Tails had worked so hard to become more independent for such a long time, and with one single dark illusion he had the urge to go back down even more on the metaphorical ladder of individuality and crawl over to the hedgehog for comfort.

But, again, he didn't want to. He was eight, for Chaos' sake! Not five anymore, he should be able to deal with this by himself. Yet it was obvious that he, in fact, wasn't.

Tails clenched his teeth and hissed in desperation, managing to close his eyes and shake his head. No, he was old enough to take this. He didn't need to cling to Sonic's leg every time he had a nightmare.

He had succumbed to the feeling the first week he had found the nightmares, admittedly, and it was perhaps because of Sonic that it hadn't been extended to two weeks or more. But that was before. He had come leaps and bounds since then, right?

Well, no, honestly. At least not in the way of dealing with emotional traumas. Leaps and bounds since, say, the ordeal with the ARK, sure. Even more so since the time he had deactivated that bomb in Station Square.

But those were instances that Tails had to help at getting rid of danger, help at a mission to stop Eggman or whoever it may be. Get rid of a physical threat that Tails' mechanical capabilities could handle.

But since the first limbo week, he hadn't changed in the sense that he could take nightmares better. Finally sense started to come back to the fox, making him realize how ironically childish he was behaving. Through that recently stubborn genius mentality—the stubborn no doubt something he had Sonic to thank for—he realized that he just wasn't at the point where he could fight of his inner demons without his surrogate brother's help. Whether he wanted it or not, he still needed the blue hedgehog, even in instances that didn't involve dealing with nothing and lightning.

Tails lay on his side for a while, staring at the wall with no inkling of drowsiness left in him. He wasn't sure if he wanted to sleep, but he had partially attempted to fall back into slumber in order to ignore how much he wanted to go to Sonic's room. Now, the issue with that plan was dealing with the still fresh memory of the dream.

The kit sighed, drumming his fingers on the pillow where his head was. Another bout of nothing happening, and the next minute bare feet had touched the floor and led the fox towards the door to his room. He didn't bother to put his shoes, socks or gloves on before he walked out.

Tails casted a glance up and down the hall after closing the entrance, ears perked as he angled them towards the room on the opposite wall, two doors down from his. Tip toeing his way across, and he wasn't sure why he cared to be quiet when he had planned to wake up Sonic anyway, Tails took a deep breath that did nothing to alleviate the knots of fear in his stomach. He closed his eyes briefly, shivering at the sudden brush of cold he felt running down his spine that certainly wasn't the cool breeze's fault. Biting back a whimper that had somehow managed to find its way to his vocal chords, the fox twisted the knob of the door rather briskly.

The room wasn't much different in size to the one Tails slept in, though the contents were different. Rather than having blueprints and random rulers and screw drivers scattered amongst the floor, Sonic's own was home to stray socks and not much else. Sonic didn't have many material things, seeing as how he never seemed to be in one spot for long. The ones the blue blur did have, however, were kept rather neatly (as opposed to his way of doing many things) on tables and containers. They were gifts from friends or knick knacks the hedgehog had found in different parts of the world. Most of these artifacts were kept in furniture that was wide and allowed wiggle room for the objects or boxes, to avoid having them shake, fall out and break with the speeds Sonic tended to have while running into his room with.

In the upper right corner was a bed, adorned with red covers that were now tangled around the blue hedgehog sleeping under them. The latter was dozing soundly, facing the wall as he lay curled up into himself and the messy blankets. Soft and leveled breathing made his chest rise and fall, small ears flicking ever now and again. He didn't seem to have noticed the fox kit's presence.

Tails pinned his ears back and breathed out shakily again, finally taking a step into Sonic's room. The floor boards were feeling generous and chose not to squeak under the weight of the golden fox, who was subconsciously wringing his twin tails around each other. Regardless of the silence of the wood, another step and a blue ear had shot up and prompted Tails to freeze.

The cobalt figure laying in the bed groaned quietly after a moment of silence, probably sure that whatever had made him come back from la-la land wasn't a threat. He rolled over to his other side, eyes still closed until he had turned around fully. They opened with a noticeable struggle, narrowing later on as if trying to make out the figure in front of them.

"Tails..?" croaked Sonic before breaking into a yawn. The hedgehog closed his eyes and rubbed them as he propped himself up on his right elbow. After his hand was back to the mattress, Sonic tilted his head at the fox.

"Hey Sonic," Tails attempted to greet the blue being, biting the inside of his cheek. "Did I come at a bad time..?"

Sonic raised an eye ridge at the younger Mobian, puffing out air through his nose. " 'Less you call the middle of the night a bad time."

"Oh, ah- sorry about that then.." he mumbled awkwardly, his large ears twitching against his skull.

"S' fine, buddy," replied Sonic, sitting up on his bed and stretching out his back. "Dream wasn't too good that I'm bummed out by it ending."

' _Well, at least you didn't have the problem I have, then_ ,' thought the fox as he couldn't find his voice save for letting out a pitiful excuse for words.

"Alright, then," the hedgehog breathed out after a long silence were he had expected Tails to explain his sudden appearance. When nothing came out of the kit besides a frown, it didn't take long for Sonic to catch up. "Nightmare, then?"

He couldn't exactly edge his way around the subject or stall now, so Tails sighed and looked up to meet his friend's emerald gaze. He nodded.

"Guessed as much," the corners of Sonic's lips twitched ever so slightly as he patted the spot next to him on the bed.

Understanding the gesture as an invitation to sit down, the fox made his way towards the azure Mobian before reluctantly taking a seat.

"So, what was this one about?" the hedgehog turned to look at Tails with a long blink, presumably to shake the remaining bits of sleep pulling his eyelids down.

"The limbo," confessed the kit, slumping his shoulders forward and propping his tired form up with his hands after settling his elbows on his knees. Sleepy or not, he was physically and emotionally drained.

"That again?" Sonic tilted his head again. "I thought you'd gotten over that months ago."

Tails winced before he could do anything to stop the action, his ears drooping again. "I did too.."

Sonic's own pair of ears was quick to perk up and a hand was even quicker to be laid on the fox's shoulder. "Sorry, wasn't accusing you of anything," he apologized, using his other hand to rub the back of his own spiky head.

"I know," replied Tails, his muscles relaxing from the tenseness he hadn't been aware of at the other's touch. "It just that I thought I was done with that too.. And I wish I was."

Sonic frowned, sighing. "I can imagine. From what you told me last time, they don't sound too good, even for nightmare standards."

The fox shook his head slowly, blinking down at his feet. "I think it was worse tonight.."

"How?" the hedgehog sounded astonished by the thought, though not severely so.

Tails managed to breathe in and out, barely catching the urge he suddenly had to whimper again. A small squeak managed to escape him, which he was sure Sonic had heard. "It was like the last times, but.. scarier."

"Ah, bud, you just didn't expect it to come back for vengeance again," the hedgehog brought his arm over the shoulders of the young fox. "Was just a nasty surprise."

"Nasty doesn't begin to describe it.." Tails shook his head and involuntarily shut his eyes, shivering again until Sonic laid his arm over him. The kit grimaced, sitting up slightly and laying his head on the hedgehog's shoulders without much power over his movement.

"If it's botherin' you so much, I think you're right," the hedgehog spoke, his body shaking once as he snorted quietly. "How 'bout awful or terrible?"

Tails shook his head again, opening his eyes and laying them on a replacement buckle strewn across the floor. "Not those either."

"Then try frightening or terrifying," offered the other.

Tails shook his head, finding the buckle to be incredibly and oh-so interesting. "Worse.." he replied in a quiet voice.

"Bunch them all together and add super duper then."

Another shake of the younger's head, his head bangs bouncing along.

"Running outta options here, buddy," warned the hedgehog, hugging the other closer and slightly shaking him. "Aren't you supposed to have the bigger brain anyway?"

The fox snuffed, not being able to stop his lips from forming a diminutive smile. It didn't last long however, as it fell soon after and he only succumbed to the hug all the more. "I don't think there are words for it.."

"Well, now I know it's real bad then," jested the hedgehog briefly before his voice turned back to a somewhat serious tone. "Was there anything different about it that wasn't in the last couple ya' had?"

Tails shook his head again, only letting his eyelids slightly fall without allowing them to close. "No, it was just worse.. It was colder than usual, and I felt even more helpless and.."

"And..?" prompted Sonic, squeezing the kit's shoulder reassuringly.

"More _dead_ ," Tails replied roughly, letting out a breath accompanied with a shudder. He felt the dread and fear crash against his chest and make his breath hitch.

Sonic, who was reasonable enough to realize offering a remark was not going to aid the situation, blinked in surprise at the bluntness of the reply. He leaned forward and hugged the small fox, who gladly melted into the embrace and burrowed his face into the other's shorter fur.

Tails hadn't meant to react that way to the hug, but he wasn't able to take it much more. The terror and panic from the moment when he could actually feel anything in his dream rushed against his chest, all but allowing him to collapse into the elder's hold. He didn't care if he lost independence, he didn't care if he was back to being five years old. All he cared about was that he needed, wanted to feel assured that he wasn't gone, that he wasn't hanging in limbo, that he wasn't freezing in the middle of nowhere, that his heart could still beat and that he could still feel. The only thing the young kit wanted was to remain in this protective hold, his brother's arms, until the nightmares realized it was futile to chase him because he'd always have the hedgehog by his side.

After a few minutes of sitting in silence, Sonic shuffled his way towards the wall next to the bed in order for him to lean against it. Tails didn't put up much of a fight as he was dragged along by the taller Mobian and shifted to be laid on the azure lap of the other. The fox kit was far too busy trying to calm himself down to protest. And, honestly, even if he was aware of the change, he wouldn't have done anything.

More silence and not much movement except for a tighter grasp on Tails' part and a sigh from Sonic's. The latter had dealt with these limbo dreams enough to know that what Tails needed was physical comfort rather than soothing words, and Tails was glad for that. Even now that he was starting to feel better, he curled up tighter against the cobalt hedgehog. He'd worry about individuality and independence later, the warm embrace from his surrogate older brother was more important at the moment.

His nightmare hadn't been a 'losing Sonic' one entirely, those were rare nowadays that he and Sonic had been through so many perilous situations. In the dream his priority hadn't been the blue blur, as he was a bit too busy panicking before the ability to feel anything left him. Now that he was back to the real world, he found another unknown weight was lifted from his chest as he fully registered that this was Sonic who was holding him, who was helping him through the terror, who was alive and well, just as he was. Tails shook his head against the stubby peach fur of Sonic's chest, squeezing the other a bit tighter.

More silence except for the beating of the hedgehog's heart against the small fox's ears. It was the only sound Tails needed to hear in order to be content, knowing Sonic was alive and that he could hear it and feel the relief that washed over him.

"M' sorry," mumbled the yellow kit after a moment, his grip on the hedgehog slackening.

"For what?" Sonic asked, confusion lacing his tone. "Waking me up?"

"Well, that and how I'm acting.." came the muffle reply, the owner's ears falling down for the millionth time that night.

"I told ya, bud, it's not a big deal. I can sleep any other time, it's not like I'll get arrested for taking a nap. Oh, I'd be spending the rest of my life behind bars if that was the case," chuckled the blue hero, the smile that Tails couldn't see obvious in his voice. "..Wait, how you're acting?" The hedgehog's embrace weakened too, but Tails assumed that Sonic was just shifting his position in order to meet the blue eyes of the fox kit.

"I'm acting like I'm five again," sulked Tails, who was too slow to hold back the whimper that had been trying to get out all night. Ah great, convenience.

The azure hedgehog scoffed, shaking his head. "Nightmares aren't only for five year olds, bud."

The fox shut his eyes in an attempt at blocking the other's prying gaze from them. "Yeah, but I shouldn't be this.. this shaken by it now.."

A heavy sigh left Sonic, propping up the smaller body in his arms. "Just because you're older now doesn't mean you can't get spooked by them, ya' know."

"But I'm eight, Sonic," Tails all but wailed, a sound that he would later cringe at, shaking his head left and right. "I'm old enough that I shouldn't want to crawl into your lap every time I get a bad dream!"

"Tails, I know you have the IQ of a genius, but I'm gonna have to correct you on that," the blue blur attempted to look at Tails again, settling for making eye contact through the golden fox's eye lids. "Eight ain't that old, kiddo."

"It is!" Tails would've probably slapped his hands over his mouth if he could realize how whiny he sounded, though it came from his desperation. "If I can do all the stuff we do to fend off Eggman at eight, I should be able to do the same with some nightmares!"

"You're still a _kid_ ," Sonic put emphasis on the last word, raising an eye ridge as the golden fox started to pry his eyes open. "Again, genius prodigy, I know, but that doesn't mean you can't act like other eight year olds now and again."

"But I'm not like others, you said it yourself! If I can do everything I can do with machinery, then I should be able to deal with this."

The blue hedgehog was quiet for a second, closing his eyes. Tails thought he had the argument beat, until Sonic started to speak again.

"Maturity and intelligence aren't the same thing, Tails," his voice took on a more serious attribute that Tails rarely saw in his brother. He was so used to the witty jokester Sonic was most of the time, and this certainly wasn't the tone of someone like that. He only heard Sonic speak like this when situations needed it and the hedgehog needed to use a more mature approach, one that dripped with as much determination as his usual smirk would.

"If it was, you wouldn't have needed me back when you were half your age. You could fix the Tornado without needing to look up a manual or look deep into it, remember? You were done in five minutes. You would've been the equivalent of a twenty year old at five, and thirty now. You're doing things that the government, Eggman, and everyone else three times your age couldn't realize or even think of. But maturity doesn't come from reading a book or having who knows how many cells in your brain or whatever, it comes from growing up and experience. You can make intelligence come faster by studying, but it's not the same case with maturity. Your brain may be as smart as that of a physician or whatever, Tails, but it's still the brain of a kid, with some grown-up junk mixed in. You know things about math and physics that should be impossible for you to get, but the fact remains that you're still eight. You have the impulses of a kid, the thoughts of a kid, the fears of a kid. I know I'm not exactly the shining example of maturity, but it's not like I'm completely oblivious to it, ya' know."

Silence loomed again for a moment, and it looked like Sonic was thinking of what to say. A deep breath later and he began again.

"When I was eight my family disappeared," the blue hedgehog's eyes were still closed, but Tails could feel his friend's inner wince. "Dunno why or how or where, but they were gone one morning. Spent months looking for them and nothing. I know you know all this, but I didn't tell you any details. Yeah, I had nightmares too. Lots of 'em. I didn't sleep for days at a time because I didn't want to deal with them, because I didn't have anyone who could help me with 'em. Fast forward two years later and Eggman shows his ugly face and I'm the only one who can go up against him. Little me didn't like the idea much, but there wasn't much choice. I didn't like seeing everyone else suffering like they were, I couldn't stand it. I wanted to help them. Zipped my way after him, bopped him in the head and got him to lay low for two years. The first fight wasn't exactly a breeze either, and believe it or not it caused more nightmares. Lucky me, eh?" He ended this next part with a low chuckle, half devoid of humor.

"But I realized something after that. If I kept clinging to the past like I had done for four years then I wasn't going to get over it. If life wanted to throw stuff at me faster than I can run, then I need to accept it and take it. So that's what I did, I focused on the present, let the past be the past, and didn't worry much about the future, and the nightmares were less. But they were still there, even after I met you. Even now, really." The last bit had been spoken under Sonic's breath, and his eyes finally opened with a new light that had Tails doubting the hedgehog still hugging him was fifteen.

"What I'm trynna say here, bud, is that maturity's something ya gotta develop over years with time. It comes with age, and it doesn't matter if you could build a nuclear bomb that could wipe the world of evil robots or a rocket the size of Holoska with a jacuzzi." And the humor was back into his voice, a smile playing on Sonic's face.

The blue blur seemed to be done with his soapbox, and Tails was surprised that it hadn't been as cheesy as usual. Probably because the hedgehog felt that he needed to be blunt and serious about this, and managed to hold back on the corniness until the last sentence. The fox kit was blinking up at him, frowning in thought at what he had been told. It wasn't often that Sonic reflected on his past. Tails had no memory of his brother doing that, safe for an instance years ago. He was somewhat rendered speechless afterward. Neither of the Mobians uttered a word for a while, though Tails found himself embracing the hedgehog again.

"I think I get it now," he breathed after a while, sky blue eyes looking up slightly at his surrogate older brother.

"Good, 'cause I didn't wanna repeat all that," chuckled Sonic, tightening his hug as well. "Not 'sactly used to telling someone 'bout how a bunch'a Eggman drones gave me night terrors. I'm a bit inexperienced on that front!"

"Well, that was a good speech then, considering the usual ones you give," Tails felt his lips tug into a smile.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Sonic asked with a pretend scowl.

"It wasn't as cheesy as I expected," joked the kit, now smirking at the azure hero.

"My speeches aren't cheesy," he huffed in indignation, though the glint in his eyes said otherwise. But bit of that huff was genuine, admittedly. "They're deep with a few corny words here n' there."

"Yeah, sure, and you're a snail," Tails rolled his eyes, his chest puffing as he chuckled. "Your speeches are as deep as any body of water you'd willingly set foot into."

"Woah there, bud, that's sensitive territory!" Tails thought had Sonic had been speaking truthfully and was about to apologize, but the hedgehog beat him to it and laughed. "I'm kidding, you know."

"Right," Tails said somewhat nervously, but that mood didn't last long.

Again there was silence save for the sound of relaxed breathing and, in Tails' case, the heartbeat of the hedgehog he was leaning against. The golden kit closed his eyes, and Sonic gently placed his chin between the fox's ears.

"Guess I was acting kinda childish, huh?" Tails broke the silence, though his voice was quiet and riddled with embarrassment and a bit of jest.

"Yup," Sonic said simply, raising his head in order to ruffle the smaller one's head bangs. "But like I said, you're a kid so I can't fault you for that. It's like in Lost Hex when ya' tried to help Cubot and almost ended up being squished to death—on second thought, I can fault you for that."

"And you did," Tails looked up at the jade optics of the hedgehog, which were noticeably glimmering with something Tails was used to: protectiveness. "You scolded me in front of Eggman."

"Well what was I supposed to do? Clap 'cause you almost got yourself killed?" Ah, there was a bit of the serious tone again.

"I was trying to help!" exclaimed the fox indignantly, squirming in the peach arms of the blue blur to cross his own. His narrowed eyes showed a bit of hurt, but he hoped Sonic couldn't see what he felt. The pout on Tails' face did not sneak past the blue blur, however.

"Yeah, but you could'a gotten yourself killed!" Now it was Sonic's turn to glare. "Didn't you think to think before doing anything?" The irony of that question hit Sonic not a second later. "Ah.."

"I could ask you the same question, you never do," sneered Tails, his grin showing sharp canines as he took advantage of the window of opportunity.

"Again, not exactly the shining example of maturity," Sonic admitted with a shake of his head. He returned the grin with a smirk and a retort of his own. " 'Sides, weren't you the one who wanted to be more mature? You were pouting back there."

"I was not!" the fox kit exclaimed in defense, turning away from his brother with a huff and, ironically, a pout.

"You're doing it again, bud," Sonic chuckled, a glint in his emerald eyes. "Still stickin' to my kid argument!"

"I-" Tails never finished his sentence, as an eye ridge was raised at him. He groaned and shook his head alike his brother, but his discontent sound was contradicted as he brought himself closer to the azure hedgehog. "Shut up."

"Aw, I ran ya' outta retorts?" Sonic's body shook as he laughed, but it wasn't even remotely specked with ill will. His laughs never were, they were always carelessly delighted, and this one was no exception. If there had been any weight left on Tails' chest left from the nightmare, it had been disbanded by that sound alone.

"No, m' just tired," the golden fox mumbled through a faceful of peach fuzz. He brought one of his tails around himself, and the other was curled around Sonic's waist.

The hedgehog smiled, his ears twitching as his ever present smile sneaked into his features. He let his head fall sideways on to the fluffy head under it, still holding his little brother in his lap.

"You tails are fluffier than I remember," he joked as he felt sleep close his eyes. Tails was no different, though he was a bit deeper into the realm between dreamland and awakeland.

"Well, fur does grow, Sonic," Tails retorted back, his speech slurred by the sleep that was ever so tempting now.

"Mine doesn't seem to get that," Sonic replied. "It stays stubby, yours doesn't. 'Sides, last time you lent me them as blankets was a couple'a months ago."

"Maybe it's as thick headed as its owner," Tails found himself giggling, unaware that he had all but fused his cheek with his friend's chest.

"Need I remind you I'm taller and capable of dumping you in the bath for that comment," Sonic was clearly saying empty threats, if his slowly wilting form didn't indicate that he was too tired to carry them out.

"Need I remind you who can fly and carry the other as well into the ocean," the kit smirked, realizing just how tired Sonic was if he wasn't tensing at the comment.

"Not this tired you're not," the hedgehog replied with a drawl, his eyes closing. " 'Sides, your tails are busy being used as blankets rather that helicopter spiny things."

Resulting to vocabulary below his usual level meant that the cobalt blur really was exhausted. Tails shook his head against the stubby peach fur of his brother's chest. "Fine, sorry you can't take the truth."

"You're lucky I'm too tired to do anythin'." Regardless of the warning the hedgehog had droned, his still lingering hug around the small fox kit said that even if in opposite circumstances he wouldn't move a finger.

Honestly, Tails wouldn't either.

With that, the two fell asleep. Tails welcomed the new darkness, the kind that was welcoming and comforting. The kind that signified peace and calm, the kind that he could only achieve when being around Sonic.

He was still dependent on the blue blur, he had come to terms with that now. He was young, even if he didn't feel it much very often or was willing to admit it to his ever-growing ego. With time he'd change and grow up, and perhaps he was subconsciously relieved it would take a while. The look in Sonic's eyes spoke of a soul that was mature beyond its years in some regards, and in the other's was as carefree and immature as others his age typically were (read: most). Tails didn't know the inner workings of the hedgehog's mind completely. He may be a genius who can analyze the hardest of files and fix the most stubborn of computers, but even he was stuck as to how Sonic's mind worked.

But he didn't need to know. If Sonic wanted to keep to himself, Tails would let him. If he wanted to let him in, like just now, Tails would let him. It was the least he could do to thank the spiky friend he called a brother for being with him since all those years ago. He would be by Sonic's side for as long as he could, even when he finally did mature. Maturity he may lack in some areas, but loyalty to the azure hero that had given him a purpose more than made up for those empty spaces. His childish acts tonight helped him to at least see sense again and remember what had already: he never wanted to part with Sonic. It had never left his mind, this thought, this wish, but tonight's happenings simply reinforced it. He'd mature, but he'd do it by Sonic's side, no matter what.


End file.
